The Shadow King
by Jacen Shadow
Summary: A strange "shadow person" is terrorizing a small village in eastern Russia. Could it be caused by Innocence?    -Same story, just retouched-
1. Trains, Canes, and Odd Mobiles

I do not own D. Gray-Man or any of its products, subsidiaries, affiliates, or their respective property. I do however claim intellectual copyright and legal ownership of my own invented characters and storylines. This is a fan fiction work and I do not obtain any fiscal gain from it (So please don't sue me -_-;;) It is illegal to reproduce and/or distribute this fan fiction work without due credit to the D. Gray-Man creators and myself. Please enjoy your reading experience! ^_^ ^_^

P.S. My Komlin II will be watching you… [\:/]

P.S.S. In case you're wondering, the mobile's song and the chapter poems are the opening theme _Lilium_ from Elfen Lied.

This is an AU/AT that I just wanted to throw in there. It focuses on just one mission. A dark presence has awakened in Eastern Europe. A strange "shadow person" has appeared and is terrorizing the inhabitants of a small Russian village. Could it be caused by Innocence? As Allen and his friends investigate this strange occurrence, two dark beings, both intent on their destruction, watch the group from the shadows. One is already well known to them, the weaver of dreams Road Camelot. When the unknown presence attacks, will it drive the Exorcists and the child Noah to join forces? Or will Road's own manic instincts be the destruction of the group?

The Shadow King

Chapter One: Trains, Canes, and Odd Mobiles

_Os iusti meditabitur sapientiam. Et lingua eius loquetur indicium._

_The mouth of the just shall meditate wisdom. His tongue shall speak judgment._

"No!" Allen screamed as the Akuma self-destructed. "Damn you Road!" Allen sat up violently in his bed. The nightmare of Road making hundreds of Akuma kill themselves, and their souls with them, had been haunting Allen for weeks now. He didn't know what had brought it on, nor could he talk to anyone about it because everyone in the Order hated the Akuma regardless of souls. He half wondered if it was the Noah of dreams messing with his mind. She had taken an, in his opinion, unhealthy liking to him and his pain. The thought of the kiss she had given him made him shudder and blush. Luckily he was going on a mission tomorrow with Lavi and Lenalee. Those two always had a way of cheering him up.

Allen looked out the window and saw that the sky was starting to brighten. With nothing else to do he wandered down to the kitchen where he found Komui and Reever both asleep on either side of an empty coffee pot. Jerry wasn't awake yet so he made himself a sandwich and fresh coffee. As he sat down he thought to amuse himself. Leaning over he whispered four words into Komui's ear. "Lenalee is getting married."

Komui rocketed out of his chair suddenly alert. When his mind caught up with his body he looked around in bewilderment. "Oh, hello Allen. Did we need something?" He motioned to the piles of paper surrounding them.

"No. I just thought you might like to see Lenalee off before we left on our mission." Allen motioned to the door where Lenalee had just walked in with a piece of toast in her mouth.

"Ah, how could I have forgotten? Of course! That's what we were doing here." Komui reached over and pulled some files off the top of a pile and handed them to the two Exorcists. "This is all of the information we have on this phenomenon. It looks like it'll be very dangerous; most of the Finders sent to investigate have been killed. So please be careful." He shot Allen a look that said he'd better take care of Lenalee or he'd have hell to pay.

As they sat down to eat their small breakfast Lenalee noticed the bags under Allen's eyes. "Hey, is everything alright? You look exhausted." The concern in her voice made Allen feel warm inside.

"Nothing. It's just—just a nightmare. I doubt anyone would understand it." Allen played with his food a little. "Lenalee? Is it strange to care for the souls of the Akuma? To want to save them?"

Lenalee sighed and stared at her toast. Allen's statement had made her lose her appetite. "Allen, you know everyone in the Order hates Akuma. No one can see what you do, with your curse that is. If there is a reason for having the slightest feeling toward the Akuma, you're probably the only one who could manage it. But you're right, nobody else would understand it." She sounded reassuring but when she finished speaking she picked up her toast and left the cafeteria, a look of dark hate and confusion on her face.

Komui left after her trying to ask what had just happened between them. The only ones in the cafeteria were Allen and the still sleeping Reever. Allen sighed in dismay. This was not the way to start out a mission. A familiar feeling of loneliness overcame him as he ate his sandwich in the silence. He was just about finished when Jerry walked in to start the morning meals.

"Hey Allen. Don't tell me you were going to go off with just that to eat! Why not have some of my mitarashi dangos? They always pick up your energy." Without waiting for an answer Jerry started making Allen's usual twenty mitarashi dangos.

Allen smiled and sighed. He was glad that he had a place to call home and friends that always seemed to know exactly what he needed to feel better. He was just about to go get some water when yet another friendly face appeared in the doorway.

"Yo Allen! Ready for the mission? I think this one's in the bag." Lavi held up a folder that contained the briefing. "Anytime they make it sound this bad it always turns out to be a snap." He chuckled then looked around the cafeteria. "Where's Lenalee? She should get some breakfast too."

"She got mad at me and left when I asked her if it was weird to want to save the souls powering the Akuma." Allen looked down in shame. "I didn't think it would make her angry."

Lavi draped a sympathetic arm over Allen's shoulders. "Allen, you've got to remember that no one else has that fancy peeper of yours. We don't see the souls powering the Akuma like you do. I saw it the one time, when your eye got its upgrade, and that glimpse made me dislike the Akuma even more. I suppose it could be because I didn't grow up with it like you did, but it's probably safer to keep thoughts like 'saving the Akuma' to yourself."

Lavi's gentle chide made Allen feel even worse. He had to apologize to Lenalee somehow before they left. He didn't have much time to think about it however because Jerry had finished his mitarashi dangos.

"Lenalee, what happened? Why are you mad at Allen now?" Komui was worried that Lenalee seemed to get angry with Allen every other week. Right before a mission was an especially bad time for this to happen because it took away from their focus and put them in greater danger.

Lenalee looked at her brother and huffed. "I don't know. I guess I'm upset that after all of the things we've been through together he doesn't trust me enough as friend to talk about what's bothering him. It's obvious that he's been losing sleep for a while but he always avoids the questions I ask him. Then he pulls out a statement like 'is it weird to want to save the Akuma's souls' right before a mission? If he doesn't even trust me to be his friend, how can we fight together on the battlefield?" Lenalee tried to keep her face from showing the hurt that Allen's lack of trust caused her.

Komui looked thoughtful then took Lenalee's hand. "You know, out of all of the Exorcists, I think Allen probably has it the hardest. I'm not saying that anyone has it easy, not by a long shot, but his cursed eye is just that. A curse. Allen once described to me what the souls powering an Akuma looked like. They cry, he said. They cry for the weak souls of those who turned them into Akuma. They cry for relief from their captivity. Worse of all, though, is what happens to the souls as the Akuma evolve. The soul deteriorates as the strength of the Akuma increases. They become pitiful, tortured entities that hardly resemble a soul anymore. When that Level 4 attacked, the sight of the poor soul attached to it made him physically ill. Seeing that kind of anguish caused by the Akuma, even more so than what we see; is it any wonder he wants to save the souls? Allen is a kind, good person. The toll that his curse must take on him is enormous. Not one single person in the Order can imagine the mental strain he must endure in a battle. That loss of sleep you mentioned? I'm just surprised it hasn't set on sooner." Komui looked thoughtful again. "I wonder if I could make something to get him to perk up. Maybe an anti-sleep formula of some sort…"

Lenalee quickly cut him off from that line of thinking. "I've never thought of that before. I guess it's no wonder he's so hard to understand sometimes. But I still wish he'd at least try to talk to me or one of the others once in awhile."

"That my dear is something you'll have to take up with him." Komui smiled down at sister. "Come on. You'd better eat more than a piece of toast before you go leave in half an hour."

Lenalee returned his smile with a hug. "Thanks brother."

It was an awkward silence in the train car as Allen and Lenalee each stared out the window to avoid the other's gaze. They had made up enough so that they could set out without an air of mistrust in the group, but they could not think of anything to draw their attention away from their quarrel. Lavi was in a different compartment with Bookman.

It was Lenalee who spoke first. She decided that, at the risk of overshadowing their mission, she would try and get Allen to vent a little. She hoped she could understand at least some of what he said. "Allen? You said you were losing sleep because of a nightmare. It might help if you talked about it. What is it about?"

Allen turned from the window looking surprised. "You really want to know?"

Lenalee put a smile on her face and leaned forward slightly. "Well, I am your friend aren't I?"

Allen smiled then looked back out the window. "It's about the Noah, Road, and that self-destruction she can force the Akuma to do." He saw Lenalee's face tighten as she realized where this was going but he was relieved to see her steel herself for it. "I couldn't care less about the weapon itself," he explained, "but the soul inside them… well they're human. I can't let a human soul be used like that." His hands tightened into fists as he thought about it.

"In my dream, I'm on an enormous battlefield. Akuma are everywhere but they don't attack. Instead they taunt me, always staying just beyond the range of my attacks while their souls cry out to me for salvation. There are hundreds and hundreds of souls calling for me to save them. I try to, I really do, but I can't reach them. Then in the middle of it all, Road appears. When she does, I can't move at all any more, like I've become frozen in place. She walks up to me and runs her hands along my shoulders and over my body, but as hard as I try I can't get my arm to move and strike her down. After that she steps back and frowns. 'What's wrong Allen?' she asks. 'Don't you like the feeling of a girl's affection?' You know how she likes me. Then she turns to the Akuma and smiles. 'Perhaps if I get rid of these distractions you'll play with me?' Then she starts to blow up the Akuma, a few at a time, until they're all gone." He turned and met Lenalee's frozen stare. She was taken aback to see the raw panic and tears in his eyes. "It might not sound bad, but just think about it Lenalee. When an Akuma self-destructs its soul isn't saved from destruction like it is with Innocence. When an Akuma self-destructs… the soul, the human soul, is destroyed forever with the weapon. I can see it when it happens. It's… it's a horrible thing to see a soul lost forever from salvation. They didn't ask to become Akuma, and yet they are kept from the rest and safety they deserve." Allen tried to talk further but a lump was forming in his throat and he was fighting to hold back tears of pain.

Lenalee got up and moved beside him. She pulled him against her into a protective embrace. She had never seen Allen look so helpless before. He was always the one you could count on, the one that inspired strength and courage in others. Now she began to realize the extent of his strength. That he could stay on this path, unwavering, when he was subject to all of that… She couldn't blame him about the Noah, though. Having one of them in your dreams, especially one that was trying to hit on you, would be enough for anyone to lose sleep. She continued to hold him until his sobs slowly died down and he fell asleep. She lay him down so that his head was on her lap and she started to speak softly to him and stroke his hair, hoping that she could somehow comfort him past any nightmares.

Allen walked slowly through winding passages before him. It was pitch black and he had to run a hand along the wall to find his way. He could feel a girl's hand holding his right hand; he assumed it was Lenalee's because he did not feel threatened by the girl's presence. Somehow he felt that he had to find a way out of the darkness if he wanted to live. He continued on down the hallways until he began to lose hope of ever finding his way back into the light. Allen finally gave up when he came to his sixth dead end.

"Well Lenalee, I guess we're going to have to wait for Lavi or Bookman to find us. I can't make heads or tails of this maze. Not in the dark."

The voice that answered him sent chills up his spine and made him withdraw his hand from the girl. "Lenalee? Silly Allen, it's just you and me in here. Did you forget?"

Allen felt a hand grope its way up his body to behind his head. He could feel it pull him forward. "Innocence Invocation!" he yelled. When nothing happened he heard Road laugh softly.

"Silly boy. You already tried that, remember?" He felt her hand continue to pull his head forward until his lips brushed against the warmth of her cheek. He felt her head turning to meet his straight on and could feel the corner of the Noah's mouth meet his.

"Yaagh!" Allen sat up instantly awake. He heard Lenalee gasp in surprise but it didn't register. His eyes were bugged out with the return of light. He reached up and felt his lips as though the dream might have somehow poisoned him.

"Allen? Are you okay?" Lenalee put her hand on his shoulder. He was shaking.

"Y-yeah. I think so." Allen took a few deep, shuddering breaths to calm himself. "The good news," he said turning to face his friend, "It wasn't the same nightmare. But the bad news is that this one was just as bad."

He recounted the dream to Lenalee and was not surprised to see a sickened look come over her face. "Allen, you have the sickest dreams I've ever heard of. It's almost like some part of your mind enjoys… that." Lenalee shook her head in disbelief. "Maybe you need to see a shrink."

Allen couldn't tell whether or not she was teasing him. "Well, maybe I should see if Tyki would go out with you. Then you'd see why I don't get much sleep with these dreams."

Lenalee shuddered. "There's no need for that." She was glad that Allen was joking around about it now. Maybe she had helped him.

She looked at him and felt that comfortable warmth that she got only around him and her brother. She started to lean forward.

"Um, Lenalee? Are you tired too? It looks like your starting to fall asleep."

Lenalee caught herself and started to blush. "Oh, yeah. I must be tired too. I hadn't realized it." She kept forgetting that however mature he seemed, Allen was still just a boy.

"Well, then let's sleep together."

"What?" Lenalee could not believe she had just heard those words from him.

"What's wrong? You're going bright red Lenalee. If you're tired you really should get some sleep. I just figured if we slept sitting leaning against each other… Well I might not have more nightmares and if Lavi comes back neither of us will have to wake up to move. Plus it's chilly in here so we'd probably be warmer."

Lenalee shook herself mentally. This was Allen. Her thoughts were way off track with him. "Oh, okay. Yeah that sounds good." She came right up next to him and laid her head on his shoulder. She hadn't realized just how cold she was until his warm right arm wrapped around her.

"Good night." Allen laid his head against hers and was soon fast asleep. Lenalee followed suit.

"Hey, you guys, wake up!" Lavi was shaking Lenalee's and Allen's shoulders. "Come on guys. It looks like the train has had a breakdown, we're going to have to find a different way to our destination."

"Come on, up!" Bookman pulled the two to their feet. "We need to find a place to stay tonight before we continue on."

The two Exorcists nodded groggily and grabbed their bags. Hiding Timcanpy under his hood, Allen brought up the rear as they exited the train.

"What happened?"

"The train hit a cow, supposedly. I think they just had engine trouble though and didn't want to admit it." Lavi smiled. "Looks like we're going to have quite a time getting to our destination now, though."

The group walked toward what appeared to be a small village off on the horizon. The world around them was a desolate sight. The ground was muddy and slick, scattered with medium and small rocks that made it difficult to keep their footing. The sky was overcast and the smell of rain hung in the air. In front of the train they could see a herd of big, brown and white cattle that milled endlessly around the tracks and first few cars.

It did not take long for them to reach the village. It was a rundown collection of old curio shops, homes, and stores. It made Lavi laugh to see that the next train stop was actually just at the edge of the town. As they walked along Allen made sure to keep a sharp eye out for Akuma.

"Exorcists! Exorcists!" The sudden cry made them whirl around.

Before them was an old man, looking to be in his in his mid-sixties, with a bald patch on the crown of his head. His thin white hair was combed and well kept as were his clothes. He carried a cane that appeared to be made from a frozen green snake. He looked completely out of place in this village.

"Who are you?" Lavi was the first to recover from his surprise.

The old man smiled and nodded. "Always so brusque… so brusque. I am Earl Mechanim. I'm a supporter of the Order." He held out his hand.

Bookman shook it first. "Greetings, friend. Tell me, what is a supporter of the Order doing way out here?"

"Well, I suppose it's because I don't like to move around much. That and I lend my house to Exorcists traveling east when the train invariably hits one of old Darby's cows. It's not much but I do what I can." He shook the rest of their hands.

"It happens that often, does it?" Bookman did not look surprised.

It happened almost faster than the eye could follow. The man's cane suddenly whipped outward and swept Allen's legs out from under him. The old man, having lost his support, fell on his face.

"Damn it! How many times do I have to tell you not to do that, Leroy!" The old man was cussing at his again inanimate cane.

"What was that?" Lenalee was tensed for an attack now.

"Huh? Oh don't worry about it. That was Leroy's idea of a joke. Damn canes, they just don't make 'em the same anymore."

"But, how did it do that?"

"How about I explain things better over a hot cup of tea , eh? Follow me, Exorcists, it feels like it's going to rain again soon." The old man turned and trotted off down the street.

"Well, it does seem we've found a place to stay tonight. Let's go." Bookman followed quickly after their new host. He didn't need to tell the others to remain on their guard. If anything, this old man was most likely a trap. But as long as Allen didn't see anything they were safe.

The old man took them to a large building on the outskirts of town. In the front was a shop with mobiles and dolls on display. The sign said "Earl's Emporium of the Wonderfully Divine". They followed him through the back door into a spacious sitting room.

"Come, come. Have a seat friends and relax. Your job is hard and rest even harder to find. Just wait here and I'll go get us some tea." On his way into the kitchen he placed his cane against the wall. They were astonished to see it wind its way upward like a snake and hang there like a decoration.

Their host soon came back with hot tea and snacks. When they were all settled he began to talk. "You were wondering about Leroy, miss? Well, there's an interesting story about him. It all started out many, many years ago in a town now lost to time. My brother and I used to own a shop there, building wonderful accessories and fancies for gentry the world around. It so happened that one day a man came into our shop ecstatic about the quality of our works. He commissioned me to build him a rather curious object. The man wanted a moving, talking umbrella. I was well known for my dancing dolls and singing mobiles, but I had never before tried to do something like this. It took me almost a year before I was able to finish the project. Normally it wouldn't have taken so long, but the specifics of the umbrella were so interesting I decided to make myself a cane with the same features. When the man came to pick up Lero, he was very pleased with the end product. Unfortunately though, that man was the Millennium Earl." The Exorcists sat up at this. "He repaid my efforts by having an Akuma come and attack the shop. My brother was killed in the attack and the shop was destroyed. If it weren't for Leroy I'd have died too. I keep him as a reminder of the evil of the Earl and his Akuma. That is also why I support the Order."

The group sat in stunned silence- that is until Lavi spoke up. "So, why do you still go by the name Earl if it's so much like _his_ name?" All eyes turned to him in disbelief.

"Really, Lavi? That's what sticks in your mind after a story like that?" Lenalee would have kicked him were he any closer.

"Think of it this way boy. Why would I give up who I am over an unfortunate coincidence? Besides, I like the irony." Earl got up and stretched. As he did so thunder rattled the windows and rain started to fall. "It's about time for bed if y'all plan on catching the train again in the morning." Bookman nodded his agreement.

"Lavi, you come with me first. We need to discuss something." Bookman led him outside.

"Well then, would you two like a room together or separately?"

"Together." Lenalee wanted to be there in case Allen had another nightmare.

"All right then, right this way." He led them up the stairs to a medium sized room with two twin beds inside. From the ceiling hung an ornate mobile of cherubs that rotated slowly. "There you go. Don't mind the mobile. It's just a bit of advertising for the ones down in my shop." Earl bid them goodnight and left.

Allen entered first and checked carefully for any hidden peepholes or eavesdropping equipment. When he was satisfied that the room was clear they lay down in the beds and tried to sleep. As they lay there the mobile overhead began to sing in the darkness.

_Os iusti meditabitur sapientiam_

_Et lingua loquetur indicium _

_Beatus vir qui suffert tentationem _

_Quoniam cum probatus fuerit accipient coronam vitae_

_Kyrie, ignis divine, eleison_

_O quam sancta, quam serena, quam benigma, quam amoena_

_O castitatis lilium_

When the song finished the only sound that could be heard in the room was the gentle breathing of two sleeping humans and the chatter of rain on the roof.


	2. Snakes on a Train

I do not own D. Gray-Man or any of its products, subsidiaries, affiliates, or their respective property. I do however claim intellectual copyright and legal ownership of my own invented characters and storylines. This is a fan fiction work and I do not obtain any fiscal gain from it (So please don't sue me -_-;;) It is illegal to reproduce and/or distribute this fan fiction work without due credit to the D. Gray-Man creators and myself. Please enjoy your reading experience! ^_^ ^_^

P.S. My Komlin II will be watching you… [\:/]

The Shadow King

Chapter Two: Snakes on a Train

_Beatus vir qui suffert tentationem. Quoniam cum probatus fuerit accipient coronam vitae._

_Blessed is the man who endureth temptation. For when he hath been proved, he shall receive a crown of life._

"Allen! Allen, wake up!" Lenalee shook his arm a little harder.

"Ooh… what is it? Is it already morning?" Allen blinked his eyes but the room remained black.

"Not yet. You were moaning pretty loudly in your sleep, I thought you might be having another nightmare." The darkness hid her worried expression so Allen assumed she was annoyed.

"Sorry. It- it wasn't a nightmare." Allen hoped he sounded too contrite for her ask any questions. It didn't work.

Lenalee sighed with relief. "Well, it must have been something if you were making that much noise. What were you dreaming about?" She sat down on his bed.

Allen was glad the lack of light hid his blushing face. "Um, it was… um…" Allen wasn't sure what to say. "Okay, it was a nightmare." He felt Lenalee tense then tensed himself when she laid her hand on his head. He knew she was waiting for a description. "It was different again. When it started the two of us, you and me, not Road, were in a beautiful forest. A woman's voice was speaking to us. Her voice was filled with an ancient power. 'The world is changed. I feel it in the water… I feel it in the earth… I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost, for none now live who remember it.' It felt like a warning. Then the shadows came. They swirled along the ground and in the air like an evil mist. The voice disappeared and it felt as if a great energy was suddenly gone from the world. The shadows surrounded us, tentacles of darkness reached out… They seemed particularly interested in…" Allen paused, not sure if it was wise to continue.

"What?" Lenalee's voice was soft, as if she were caught up in a fascinating story. "What were they interested in?"

Allen gulped. "They weren't interested in me at all. They were… more than interested… in you, your body." Allen felt the surprise radiate from Lenalee. He was almost afraid he was going to get smacked.

"Go on," she said tightly.

"We tried to fight them off. I even fully activated Clown Crown, but whenever our attacks connected, they went right through, as if they were really nothing but shadow. I couldn't— couldn't keep them off of you. They tore away your clothes and…"

Lenalee had withdrawn her hand and her voice was now dangerous. "You were moaning about me being raped?"

Allen figured he had nothing left to lose now so he continued. "No, that wasn't it. The shadows, they weren't with us for long. In fact they left almost as soon as they started. When I checked to see if you were injured you were acting very strangely. As if it were someone else in control of your body. You— you tackled me. You know I can't fight cute girls, especially naked cute girls. I am still a guy. Well, you just started doing things and it just kind… of… went berserk." Allen was sure he was going to die at the end of that sentence.

Instead he felt Lenalee rise from the bed and heard her back away. "Y-you dreamed that… w-we did _that_?" He could tell from her words that her breathing had quickened considerably. "Allen, I understand that you're a guy and all, and that those kind of dreams are normal for your age. But there's something else…" He heard her approach the bed again and sit down.

"Allen, I think these dreams of yours, the dreams of the shadows, are a warning. I think we need to be really careful on this mission because," Lenalee took a deep breath, "I've been dreaming of the shadows too."

Allen was stunned. He sat up and threw the sheet from his body. "Really? Lenalee, that's great!"

"What do you mean, 'great'? We've been dreaming about the same unknown evil, the same one that we're probably going to face right now, you tell me I'm going to be raped by it, and you say 'great'?"

"I meant that it means I'm not going crazy. That's what was great. But Lenalee," Allen reached forward and pulled her close. "I will do everything in my power to make sure that whatever that thing is out there doesn't lay a finger, or a shadow, on you."

"Allen…" Lenalee wrapped her arms around him and felt tears starting to burn in her eyes.

"Yeah, I fear your brother too much to let anything like that happen."

Lenalee laughed at this and punched Allen playfully. "That's the only reason, huh? Well I suppose it's a start." She laughed again and lay down on the bed.

"Uh, what are you doing?"

"I'm going back to sleep. You should too."

"But, you're in my bed."

"I know. I figured I'd let my valiant protector get started on his job. Don't worry, I won't tell Komui that I slept in the same bed as you this trip. She reached behind herself and pulled Allen down. "Now go to sleep. We'll need your eye on the trip tomorrow." She blushed as he put an arm over her.

"Okay. Good night."

"Good night."

"Wow, Allen. If Komui ever found out about this he'd probably force you to skin yourself and tan the hide." Lavi didn't crack a smile when he said this. He had just come in to wake Allen and Lenalee and found them holding each other in their sleep.

"Oh, Lavi, um, it's not what it looks like." Lenalee rose quickly and straightened her clothing. "I just got up to use the bathroom and… returned to the wrong bed."

Lavi gave her a "you expect me to believe that?" look and shrugged. "Whatever, just so long as you both keep a clear head we'll be fine." He left the room struggling not to laugh.

"Come on Allen, we'd better get going. You don't want to miss your breakfast do you?"

At the mention of food Allen's eyes shot open. "What're we having?"

Lenalee just laughed and started out the door. "We'll just have to see, won't we?"

Once they got down to the sitting room they were surprised to find that Bookman had left the night before on other business. "Bookman work" was the only explanation Lavi would give.

Earl had provided them with a bountiful buffet that consisted of eggs, sausage, bacon, ham, fruit, and many other breakfast foods.

"Please dig in. There's plenty of food. Especially you, young man; you parasite types are always bottomless pits." Earl laughed as Allen started to mound a dish with everything in sight.

"Do you know when the train leaves?" Lenalee didn't want to fall behind on their journey. If their information was correct, a Noah had been spotted moving toward the same phenomena they were investigating.

"Yeah. You'll need to leave in about an hour to catch your train. Where're y'all headed, anyway?"

"Russia."

"That's quite a distance. It's no wonder you Exorcists age so quickly when all you do is travel and fight. It's not right for such young folks to have to carry such a heavy burden."

"But if we didn't, who would?" Lavi made the question sound as if he lost sleep over it often.

"That is the catch isn't it, young man? Well, after you've all had your fill, I'd like you to come up front to my store. There's something I'd like to show you."

The Exorcists all nodded and began their meal in earnest; Allen went back for his third serving.

When they were finished they gathered in Earl's shop. "So what did you want to show us?"

"These," Earl reached down behind a counter and pulled out some objects. "This will probably be the last time I am able to help the Order. I am old and sick; I know my time is near. I have made it my life's work to help stop the Millennium Earl, and I've fashioned these objects for that task. I had some help, what was his name? Boss? No. Floss… Ross… oh well. His name isn't important. But these are." He handed the first package to Lavi.

"This is stout weapon, perfect for beating Akuma senseless. It's a tricky little bastard, when you say the word it explodes. Drives enemies insane. There are five of 'em there."

The next package he handed to Lenalee. "This is a handy little gadget. It's made from cleansed and purified Akuma parts, that fellow… oh, Dross was his name!… built it. If you lose a limb or get seriously injured in battle this thing will completely replace the damage."

The last object he brought out was already familiar. "Boy, you're peculiar. There's something about you that gives off a feeling of power. I want you to take Leroy, and make good use of him. He's a good friend and a great way to get out of a tight spot. Plus he's very observant and he'll warn you if he sees anything abnormal. That Exorcist Dross put some of his own touches to him as well so he'll be up to even better standards than before."

Earl crossed the store and opened the door. "You'd better get going if you want to catch the train. Good luck!" Earl left the room slowly, stopping only to say another goodbye to Leroy who had wound himself around Allen's arm.

The Exorcists left quietly, unsure of what to say. They walked quickly to the train station and boarded. As they were sitting down it was Leroy who broke the silence. "For Heaven'sss sake. Sssomebody ssay something, thiss ssilence iss depressing."

"Do you always talk like that?" Lavi was already annoyed at the spine-tingling hiss of Leroy's voice.

"No. I just wanted someone to say something. So we're going to Russia, huh? Why?" Leroy unwound himself part way from Allen's arm so he could look around.

"Well, there may be a case of Innocence there. We're going to see if it is or not."

"Oh, I see. So what kind of strange happenings are going on? There's always something going on with unpartnered Innocence."

The group looked at him in surprise. "How did you know that?"

"Hello? I've been helping my creator to slow down the Millennium One for almost as long as the Order has been around. I think I'd know _something _at least, don't you?" Leroy rose up until he was looking Lavi directly in the eye. "As a Bookman apprentice I should hope you would know something as well, child."

Allen and Lenalee both laughed at this. It wasn't often someone other than Bookman could outwit Lavi. They sat back and watched as Leroy and Lavi exchanged good-natured posturing and insults. But soon enough the two combatants ran out of things to say and the compartment fell silent.

With nothing better to do, and to give Lavi something more to laugh at, Lenalee slid closer to Allen and snuggled up to him.

"Um, Lenalee? What are you doing?" Allen wasn't sure what was going on.

"Getting comfortable." She winked at Lavi who tried hard to control his expression. "Don't tell my brother, alright?"

"I won't," said Allen and Lavi in unison.

"Is there something wrong with her brother, Master?" Leroy was addressing Allen from the wall where he had hung himself like he had at Earl's.

"Huh? Master? Just call me Allen, please. There's nothing wrong with Komui at all, in fact he's a really great guy. He just tends to be over-protective of Lenalee sometimes."

"Is this Komui an Exorcist as well, Master?" Nobody could tell whether Leroy was teasing Allen or not.

"Please, just call me Allen. No, Komui's not an Exorcist, he's the Head of the Science Department at the Order's HQ."

"I see. Please forgive me for calling you Master, Master, but a machine can only do what it is programmed to do."

"Really? But Lero calls the Millennium Earl by his name."

"Lero is a traitor. He probably has also had modifications done on him since he was… purchased." The ice in Leroy's voice left no doubt what would happen if he ever met his twin again.

Lenalee took the opportunity to play with Allen some more. "Allen, I'll call you Master too, if you want." She reached up and stroked his cheek.

Allen turned beet red and started stammering. "W-what is t-that supposed t-to mean?"

Lavi couldn't control himself this time and started laughing uproariously.

"Lavi? What's so funny?" Allen was severely confused. It seemed that no matter how coarse his time with General Cross had made him, he was still wide open to a female's assault.

Lenalee laughed and hugged him. "I'm just playing."

"I don't want to think what would happen if a girl were serious with you Allen," Lavi had calmed down a bit now. "You'd probably keel over."

This time even Leroy laughed.

Allen was still bright red, but this time from embarrassment. "I'm going out for some air. I'll be back in a while." He grabbed Leroy off of the wall and left.

Lavi looked to Lenalee with a confused expression. "Too much?" He asked.

Lenalee nodded. "Yeah, I think we overdid it a little. But it just isn't often that we get to act our age. I'll go find him and apologize."

Lenalee left the compartment and walked toward the back of the train. As she approached the end of the train she could hear Allen speaking.

"Hey Leroy, can you fly like Lero?"

"I can now. It was one of the modifications made to me by General Cross Marian. He assured me that I could now do everything my twin can, except control Akuma."

Lenalee heard a choking sound from Allen.

"Him? I thought Earl said the man who helped build those things was named Dross? Although admittedly I can see where the confusion might occur."

"Earl was a hundred years old. He was going senile. Do you not like General Cross?"

"I hate that man. I can't even stand the thought of him."

"I see."

Lenalee was about to announce herself when Allen spoke again.

"Did my Master know I was coming?"

"He said he was on his way to Russia to drop something off and that a boy with a curse mark over his eye would arrive a year or so after. When he did, I was to accompany him on his fight against the Earl."

Lenalee looked around the corner and saw Allen absently playing with the malleable Timcanpy while he and Leroy both stared at the receding scenery around them.

"You can come out now, Lenalee. You can't hide from me when you're carrying around that Akuma piece in your pack. Purified or not it still activates my eye."

Lenalee blushed and stepped out. "Sorry. I came to apologize for teasing you so much back there."

Allen turned to face her and his eyes softened. "It's alright. I know you don't mean any harm." He stepped closer and pulled her against him. "I also know that every tease has a grain of truth in it." He leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "No one will know." He lifted her chin with his finger and started to come closer.

Lenalee stiffened. She hadn't expected this at all. All she could do was let the moment take her. She closed her eyes… and heard Allen start to laugh.

He released her and stepped back, laughing along with Leroy. "Wow, you're right. I thought for sure it wouldn't work. I have to hand it to you, you are one sneaky snake."

"Thank you, Master. That is high praise indeed." Said Leroy in between hisses of laughter.

Lenalee was shocked. Allen had just played her like a pro. Even if the idea was Leroy's she had to wonder just what had led Allen to perfect such smoothness. She was also very, very angry now.

"Allen, you idiot! I came out here to apologize and you do this?" She whirled around and stalked off, tears of anger running down her cheeks.

"Oh, man. I didn't think she'd take it that hard. Now I have to go and apologize. Come on Leroy, we have to go find her."

Leroy curled around Allen's arm and they went off, Timcanpy flying lazily behind.

They were almost to the front of the train when Allen suddenly got a chill. "She's in here," he said. He opened the door to the next car and stopped cold. Lenalee was on the floor, bound and gagged. Behind her was a child with large amber eyes.

"Road." Allen put as much venom into his voice as he could, which wasn't much considering what Road was wearing.

It was a short skirt and a tight black top that together left little to the imagination. In place of her usual lollipop was a normal, round sucker.

"Hello Allen. It's been a while. I've wanted to play." She smiled sadistically and pulled one of her characteristic sharpened candles from behind her back. "But we both know you don't like to play with distractions around." She drove arm down toward Lenalee's side.

"No!" Allen stepped forward but stopped when he saw that a bright green streak had stopped Road's attack.

Road herself was extremely amused. "Oh, learned some new tricks have we Allen? This will be fun." She laughed and skipped toward him. "So how did you do that? Do you know magic, Allen?" Road was too busy trying to psyche Allen out that she didn't hear the sound of Leroy breaking Lenalee's bindings.

Allen saw his chance to repay the mind games. "Yeah, in fact I've just learned some very interesting magic, Road. Let's see if I can do it right…" Allen held out his hand, palm outward, toward the Noah and pretended to concentrate.

Road got a scared look on her face but when nothing happened she relaxed. "Whatever it was, it didn't work." She said disappointedly.

"Wrong. Turn around and see what happened while you were looking at my hand." Allen smiled mischievously because both Lenalee and Leroy had escaped out the open window.

"What? No! How—how did you do this? It's impossible!" Allen was happy to see that Noah could get scared to.

"It was easy. I've learned plenty of magic since we last met. Want to see another one? I learned it for naughty Noah who try to hurt my friends."

Road's eyes widened as Allen began chanting a stream of unfamiliar language and making signs with his hands. She really did not want to know what was going to happen. She had to stop him.

"Um barata mike— ugh…" Allen stopped short on his act when a candle pierced the door behind him, just missing his head by millimeters.

"Seems like your new skills are a bit slow, Allen." Road walked over to him. "Now it's my turn to show you what I've been practicing."

Allen couldn't react before Road jumped on him, planting her lips firmly against his. Despite his thrashing he couldn't get her off. Slowly the warmth of her mouth combined with his growing exhaustion from flailing around made him sink to the floor. He didn't return the Noah's kiss, but he didn't reject it either.

When she realized she had won Road broke the kiss and sat on his lap. "See? That was nice, wasn't it. Now here's one I learned for good little Exorcists who deserve a reward."

She kissed him again, more forcefully this time. Allen couldn't help but smash his head against the wall in an attempt to get away again when he felt Road's tongue force its way into his mouth. He quickly stopped fighting though.

It wasn't like anything Allen had ever experienced before. The wanting urgency of the kiss made his mind haze. His adolescent brain was soon given over to more natural instincts and he returned the kiss.

He felt the strange sensation as his tongue chased Road's back into her mouth. It was the last time he would ever do that. As soon as her own tongue was safe, Road bit down. Hard. She sighed as the taste of Allen's blood filled her mouth before he pulled back, screaming in pain.

"Fuck you, Road! Aaugh! My tongue! Aauugh!"

Road smiled as she stood up, still savoring the delicious coppery flavor of her crush's blood and flesh. "You should be happy, I wanted to bite it off. But then I wouldn't be able to hear your sweet voice again." Road flashed him a cutely devilish smile and her door appeared next to her. "Until next time, Allen."

Allen lunged forward trying to strike Road before she disappeared. He missed and landed on the floor. He screamed in rage then passed out. Road's lipstick had contained a powerful anesthetic.

Allen slowly became aware of the aching that was spreading throughout his body as his blood flow returned to normal. He tried to move but his body was not responding yet.

"Hmmp phm mmm." He couldn't talk yet either. Not that he really wanted to, moving his tongue was extremely painful.

"Oh, Lavi he's awake!" Lenalee kneeled beside him. "Allen? What happened? I went to go get Lavi but when we got back you were passed out and your mouth was bleeding badly."

"Ah thipped ahn bhit ith." Allen was sure that would get him laughed at, but it was better than telling the truth.

"Is that it? I thought maybe Road got a good hit in." Lavi looked surprised.

"She wath going through her door. I thried to tackle her but it dithappeared."

Lavi nodded in understanding. "I can see how that might happen. You might want to stop talking for a while though; just listening to you is painful. I'll go to the galley and see if they have some ice."

After Lavi left Lenalee looked down at Allen with sorrow. "That's not what happened, is it?"

Allen did his best to look confused.

"Allen, there was black lipstick on your lips. I wiped it off before Lavi saw it. You don't have to tell me now, but don't lie to me. Okay?" She made him look her in the eyes and promise to tell her later. "Good. At least I know you didn't enjoy it." She pointed over to where Allen had dented the wood with his head trying to get away.

Allen put a pained look on his face and closed his eyes. He heard Lenalee sigh and stand up. He felt her grab him under his arms and start to pull him. He opened his eyes and just about blacked out again; Lenalee was pulling him to the side where he could sit up, and her position over him as she let go gave an unobstructed view up her skirt.

"Is that better?" Lenalee stepped back a pace.

"Pi-pink stripes…" Allen spoke in a dazed whisper.

"What was that?"

Allen shook his head and smiled, hoping that would answer her question. It did. She smiled in satisfaction and sat down beside him.

Allen wished he could talk, to express his thanks. In lieu of words he managed to move his arm over enough that he could give her hand a gentle squeeze. Leroy floated over and looked from one Exorcist to the other and floated away again hissing with near silent laughter.

Surprised Lenalee looked over at Allen only to catch her breath in surprise. Allen had a big smile on his face and the light coming in through the windows hit his white hair and the wall around him giving him the appearance of wearing a bright golden crown. Just as quickly it disappeared and he was left with a halo of shadow as the clouds moved in.

"You deserve a crown," she whispered. "You deserve life."

She did not see Road's shadow as the Noah watched through the window and contemplated her demise.


	3. The Last Samurai

I do not own D. Gray-Man or any of its products, subsidiaries, affiliates, or their respective property. I do however claim intellectual copyright and legal ownership of my own invented characters and storylines. This is a fan fiction work and I do not obtain any fiscal gain from it (So please don't sue me -_-;;) It is illegal to reproduce and/or distribute this fan fiction work without due credit to the D. Gray-Man creators and myself. Please enjoy your reading experience! ^_^ ^_^

The Shadow King

Chapter Three: The Last Samurai

_Kyrie, ignis divine, eleison._

_Lord, fire divine, have mercy._

Allen looked up at the giant doors before him. "What do you think they're trying to keep out?" The train had just dropped them off at their final stop and the Exorcists were gathered in front of the gates to their destination.

"Maybe they're trying to keep something in?" Lavi stepped forward and knocked on the doors as hard as he could.

"Hello? Hey, let us in, we're here to help you!"

"Maybe they don't understand us. How do you say 'let us in' in Russian?"

Before anyone could answer the doors opened. Or, rather, they disappeared into a shadowy mist and left the way before them clear.

"Interesting. Shall we?" Lavi walked through the gate without hesitation. "Hm, who opened the doors I wonder? There's nobody on this side."

"Figures. You're worried about who opened the doors when the rest of us are worried about how they opened them. Seeing something as large as those doors just disappear like that is kind of unnerving." Allen shivered when the doors reappeared behind them.

The trio walked slowly into town, expecting to be attacked at any moment. Their intelligence had told them that the town was a busy farming community ruled over by a lineage of samurai who had escaped and defected to Russia when the lockdown in Japan had first taken effect. The village was a large producer of rice for the use in trade with the Ottomans. It was also suggested that the current governor had become corrupt and had started abusing his subjects. It had been reported that the women had started to disappear first, followed by large amounts of rice. When the villagers had revolted they disappeared as well. This in itself was not so unusual as to draw the attention of the Order, but after the villagers had disappeared the village had begun producing far more rice than its lands were capable of doing.

"Hey Lavi, this job remind you of anything?"

Bookman's apprentice nodded. "I know. It's similar to Alastair's circumstance, isn't it? What do you think the odds are that this guy has an Akuma girlfriend as well?"

Allen shrugged and went to the nearest house. Without knocking he opened the door and strode in. The interior was dark; the village had not been introduced to electricity yet. Walking from one room to the other he had the impression that the residents that had lived here knew they were leaving and had planned to return. When he got to the kitchen he discovered that all of the food had been removed. The cupboards were filled cobwebs and dust. He left in disgust.

"Did you find anything?"

"Nothing. It's so bare in there. It looked like they left on purpose. Everything was neat and put away, like they were going on vacation or something. There wasn't even a single crumb of food in the house."

Lenalee frowned at this. "I wonder how anyone could make an entire village vanish like—"

She was cut short by the sound of crying. A child came around the corner at a run and wrapped her arms around Lenalee's legs. "Help me… my mother she… she's gone. She disappeared."

"What? Where?"

The little girl pointed to where she had just come from and Allen took off with Lavi in hot pursuit. When they were out of sight Lenalee ushered the child into a nearby house so they would not be easily seen by any enemies. Then she had the little girl explain what had happened.

"My mom and me were going to visit my uncle, he lives in this town. When we got here though, nobody was around. We looked as hard as we could but we didn't find nobody. When we got to the big house, I heard my mom say to run and when I turned around she was gone. I ran away as fast as I could and I ran into you."

Lenalee looked at the tear-stained face of the child and believed her. "What's your name?"

The little girl looked into Lenalee's eyes. "Michi. What's yours?"

"I'm Lenalee."

"Why are you here? Did you lose someone too?"

Lenalee shook her head. "No. My friends and I came here to stop the people from disappearing."

"Are you going to leave me, then?" Michi started to tear up again from the fear of being left alone in the town.

"No, I guess you'll have to come with us. We don't want anyone else to disappear here." Lenalee did not add that taking Michi along might allow them to observe how the disappearances were happening, assuming they were not taken first.

"Good. This place is scary with no people." Michi nodded emphatically. She started to ask where the other two people had gone when her stomach erupted into a loud growl. She winced.

Lenalee looked startled. "Are you hungry? How long has it been since you've eaten?"

Michi looked sad again. "A couple of days. My mom couldn't afford to feed me very much. That's why we came to visit Uncle."

Lenalee sighed and took a ration from her pack and gave it to Michi. The young girl, probably trying to impress Lenalee, did not tear into it but instead ate the meal with a quiet refrain, as though she were in a court of royalty. Lenalee smiled at this and thought back to her childhood and the fantasies every girl has of being a princess.

They sat in silence for some time. A clock on the wall only served to make Lenalee anxious with each passing minute that Allen and Lavi did not return. She was just about to leave Michi there and go looking for them when they came in through the door. She was surprised that they had found her without searching, until she remembered the Akuma metal in her pack.

Allen sat down with a sigh. "Sorry we took so long. We were looking everywhere to find a clue of some sort. We didn't find anything out in the village, but we got something even better." He smiled proudly.

Lavi nodded. "Yep. We were at the top of the street, outside of the governor's house, when we heard a voice calling to us. It was the governor himself. He invited us in because we were the first people he had seen in ages, apparently. He was worried sick about the disappearance of his village and even more frightened about the continuing flow of rice from the fields. He said it was like ghosts were working the fields in the dead of night. The good news is that he invited us to stay at his house until our investigation was concluded."

Lenalee was skeptical. "How do you know he's not the Noah that was reported near here? Remember that Noah Tyki Mikk? He played cards with Allen, face to face, and Allen couldn't tell he was an enemy. How do we know he's not just luring us into a trap?" Nobody noticed Michi's sudden nervous behavior at the mention of Noah.

"What, do you think we're stupid? Allen convinced him to be cut with Clown Crown. The man didn't even wince with pain."

Lenalee was impressed. She wouldn't have thought of that at all. "How did you convince someone to let you swing a sword through them?"

"Well, when we were discussing the topic, he said it would dishonor him to be under suspicion of killing even one innocent person, let alone a whole village. So he said we could have him do anything we wanted to prove his innocence."

Lenalee could understand that. She quickly readied her pack while introducing the others to Michi.

Michi was delighted when she met Allen. "Wow! Is your hair really white? It's so pretty! It makes you look like an old man, but better! It reminds me of my uncle Earl, he has white hair too, and he carries a green cane just like that." She laughed with delight. Allen had hidden Timcanpy in his sleeve so Michi wouldn't see him but Leroy had stayed out, stiffened into his cane-like appearance.

"Um, thanks." Allen wasn't sure how to take Michi's comment, or the fact that she knew Earl. He gave the others a look that told them they would discuss it later.

Lavi laughed. "Man Allen. You sure seem to have a way with little girls, don't you? First Road and now Michi; somebody ought to lock you up."

"Shut up Lavi." Allen punched his friend in the gut, doubling him over.

"Okay… okay. No… more… girl … jokes…" Lavi had gotten the wind knocked out of him.

Before they could get off track even more Lenalee hurried them out the door and up the road. They hadn't gone more than a few steps before Allen attacked. He suddenly spun around, activating his Innocence and firing just inches from the side of Lavi's head. In the distance they could see something explode.

"Holy crap! What the hell Allen? You could at least warn me before you do that." Lavi's face was white.

"Complain later. Lenalee, get Michi to the governor's house, quickly! We've got company approaching fast. Looks like five or six Level Twos. Take Leroy just in case." He tossed Leroy to Lenalee then started firing again and again as Lenalee picked Michi up off of the ground and activated her own Innocence.

She had not been gone long before Allen swore. "Shit. Lavi, you take care of the rest of these guys. Three Level Threes just appeared by the train station." Without waiting for an answer Allen spun around and ran off down the hill.

"Great. Why do these things always pick the most inopportune time to show up? Oh well. Big hammer, little hammer, grow, grow, grow!" Lavi activated his weapon just as the first of his enemies appeared over a nearby house.

"Take this!" Lavi swung his hammer down on top of the Akuma destroying it and the house underneath. He swung it back around in a wide arc hitting another Akuma. "Come on Allen, why'd I have to get stuck with the small fry?" Lavi drew back and activated his first Fire Seal. The flames leapt outward toward the other three Akuma, encircling them.

"Ha! You think a little fire will stop me, Exorcist?" The largest of the three Akuma, who resembled some kind of aquatic creature, turned to water, soaking into the ground and flowing out beyond the danger of the flames. The other two were not so lucky, having no abilities that could save them from the inferno.

Lavi turned to face the other Akuma but saw only shadows moving along the ground toward the area where Allen was fighting. "Strange, I don't see any clouds in the sky." Activating another seal, he struck the ground with the shadows, thinking that it was the Akuma trying to escape through the ground.

The ground exploded, but the shadows remained unchanged. They began to move faster and, assuming there was no more threat, Lavi followed curiously.

"Gyaagh!" Allen flew through the air from the force of the impact. The Akuma he was fighting had the nasty ability to control his density. Every time Allen tried to slice him in two his attack would glance harmlessly off and he would end up being hit by a hyper-dense arm. It infuriated him. He had killed the other two Akuma on the run, but this one was strong enough to be near evolution and his shots had little effect.

"Ha, ha. Is that all you have, kid? This is going to be too easy." The Akuma blurred and appeared behind Allen. By lowering the density of everything but his legs the Akuma could travel at super high speeds. He struck a crushing blow to Allen's back that sent the Exorcist high into the air.

Allen could feel some ribs crack with the impact and he swore; combined with his shattered leg it would be almost impossible to move now. Even though Clown Crown was a body armor type, it could not entirely diffuse the equivalent impact of a semi-truck. He tried to rotate in the air and bring his sword down on the Akuma, but his broken ribs would not let him. He fell to the ground in a heap.

Allen coughed. He had only one choice left. "Clown Belt!"

"What's this? Still have some strength left, huh? This should be fun." The Akuma charged Allen at a sprint.

Using Clown Belt to move himself like a puppet Allen side stepped the attack and brought his sword down across the back of the Akuma.

"AARGH! You little brat, you'll pay for that." The Akuma sprang to Allen's side and smacked him across the street. Allen stopped himself from crashing into the ground by wrapping Clown Belt around the Akuma's wrist and pulling himself forward.

"You fool. Now you lose." The ground around the Akuma began to shatter as his density began to rise well beyond Earthly norms.

Allen knew something was wrong. He tried to pull himself away from the Akuma but kept sliding back because Clown Belt could not release the Akuma's wrist. The hole around them widened as more and more material was drawn toward the Akuma's incredible weight. Allen knew the debris would smother him if something didn't change soon.

Suddenly the shadows around them deepened and the flow of debris stopped and started to reverse. A shadow passed over the ground and Allen saw that the dirt replaced itself following the edge of the shade. He also noted the wall of darkness that had surrounded them while they had been in the hole.

"What's this? What are you doing, brat?" The Akuma screamed and tried to increase his density to the point where it physically crushed the Exorcist, but it didn't work.

Allen tried and succeeded in releasing Clown Belt this time and pulled himself away from the Akuma. The light in the shadow-enclosed area was beginning to fade but he could make out tendrils of darkness wrapping around the struggling Akuma.

"Allen! Allen, you in there?" Allen suddenly heard Lavi's voice shout from somewhere beyond the darkness.

"Yeah! What's happening out there? I can't see a thing!"

"You tell me. All I see is a really big black thing. I tried to come in but I just passed right through to the other side, like it was a shadow or something." Lavi sounded severely frustrated.

Allen could feel the shadows start to wind over his body now. But just as soon as they started, the shadows vanished. Before they completely disintegrated Allen caught a glimpse of a sharpened, floating candle blazing in the darkness.

"Hey Allen, are you okay? What happened in there?" Lavi walked over to his prostrate friend. There was no sign of an Akuma anywhere.

"I'm, okay. I think I broke a couple of ribs though." He pushed himself to his feet with Clown Belt. "I can keep this up until we get to the governor's house. We need to get out of here; whatever just happened wasn't the effect of unpartnered Innocence. There's an accommodator in this village and they're the person that kidnapped these people."

"Welcome! Come in, quickly. Those things out there aren't to be trifled with." The man who had opened the door pulled Lenalee and Michi through, slamming the door shut behind them.

"You know about Akuma?" Lenalee readied herself to attack; already this man had made himself suspicious.

"Of course I do. My honored ancestors devoted their lives to destroying those filthy weapons." The man drew a sword and raised it into the air. "I am Zaemon Yoshichika, the Peaceable. I am the governor of this region and a samurai in the service of the Czar."

Lenalee relaxed. He was obviously not an Akuma; they weren't so chatty. "I am Lenalee Lee, an Exorcist in the service of the Black Order, and this is Michi. She's the daughter of one of the recently kidnapped women."

Zaemon kneeled down to look Michi in the eye. "You poor child. But with a name like Road you can't help but have a difficult path I suppose."

Lenalee jumped into the air, her Black Boots fully activated, when she heard Zaemon's statement. "What was that?"

Michi's eyes began to tear at Lenalee's harsh look and Zaemon looked up at Lenalee disapprovingly. "Do you dare disrespect me by drawing your weapon in my household, girl?"

"What was that you said about Road?" Lenalee was starting to panic. If there were two Noah here then their hopes of recovering the Innocence were gone, as were the hopes of escaping with their lives.

"I was merely commenting on this unfortunate girl's name. In my ancestral language 'michi' translates into road." Zaemon was still frowning and his hand was starting to grip the pommel of his sword.

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Lenalee dropped to the ground and apologized. "Road is the name of a Noah, an extremely powerful enemy, that we've already encountered once on our journey."

Zaemon's expression softened. "I see. Well, we can be certain that this child is not an enemy, can't we? I mean she's only a kid."

"Road is only a kid too." Lenalee believed that Michi was not the sadistic killer who shared her name. She just couldn't help but be spooked when a total stranger pulled that name from out of nowhere.

"Seeing as how none of you are dead right now, can we please stop pretending that I'm a bad person?" Michi was pouting now.

Zaemon laughed. "Sure thing, kid. Why don't you two get cleaned up while we wait for your friends to arrive? It feels like they've already dealt with the Akuma."

Lenalee's brow furrowed. "How can you tell?"

"Because my ancestors were powerful magicians that passed their skills on down through the generations. This town is monitored by my Akuma detection spell twenty-four hours a day. That's why these disappearances are so unnerving to me." He led the girls to some rooms where they could get refreshed and relax until Allen and Lavi showed up.

As Lenalee removed her travel worn clothes she could hear Michi in the next room give a loud sigh, as if she had heard a dear friend was on the verge of dying but suddenly pulled through. "Wow, I got here just in time. Any longer and—" Lenalee did not hear anything else. She assumed the girl was merely glad to get clean in what looked to be the first time in months.

When she had finished her shower Lenalee put on fresh clothes and lay down on the bed to think. She felt guilty, really, that her friends were the only ones engaging in combat this trip. It was stupid to feel that way of course, there wasn't much she could have done on the train, not with her Innocence. This time she had been prepared but had had to protect a civilian.

"Why so sad?" Leroy was curled up on the windowsill, bathing in the sunlight.

"I'm not sad, I just wish I could do more to help. It's frustrating just guarding a little girl when your friends are out there risking their lives."

Leroy considered it. "I think you should be grateful instead." Lenalee looked up in surprise at this. "Allen and Lavi both wanted you to be kept safe, away from the danger. They also thought that if they didn't succeed, you were the one strong enough to put up a last line of defense. Being left out of a minor skirmish is not an insult, but an honor."

Lenalee smiled but the words of comfort did little to soothe her feelings. The sound of the front door broke her reverie.

"Quick, somebody get some bandages and board! Come on, we need them now!" Lavi's request made Lenalee practically fly down the stairs.

She stopped in her tracks when she saw Allen moving himself with Clown Belt, his body hanging limply on the Innocence. His breathing was shallow and it was obviously taxing his strength to keep Clown Belt activated.

She was moved out of the way as Zaemon came through the hallway with what looked like a door. They got Allen settled on it and he released Clown Crown. The smell of blood washed over them as his wounds were revealed from beneath the body armor. His right tibia had been fractured, piercing the skin of his leg in three places. Upon further inspection they found three broken ribs and a fractured skull as well.

Zaemon carried Allen away with the help of his son Kyuzo, who had been summoned from his underground laboratory. Healing arts were well known to their family and they promised to have the Exorcist stabilized within the hour and healed within the month.

"Looks like Allen isn't as hard headed as we assumed." Lavi tried to chuckle but he couldn't bring himself to smile. The look on Lenalee's face banished even the thought of humor.

"I hope he heals quickly." Michi was standing on the stairs looking down at the scene. A hungry glint flashed through her eyes as they followed the path of blood droplets down the hallway. "It looked like he was hurt bad."

"Yeah. You shouldn't have seen that, let's get you back up to your room." Lenalee walked up the stairs and took hold of Michi's hand, leading her away.

Lavi smiled. He always liked it when Lenalee revealed her maternal side. He just wished he could get her to show that side to him.

"Bookman Apprentice." Leroy's voice jolted him out of his thoughts. "There is something I need to tell you."

"What is it?"

"That girl, the one who calls herself Michi. She said Earl was her uncle."

"Yeah, so? Earl said he had a brother."

"Sir, Earl has no living relatives. That girl has never even met him before."

Lavi froze. "Then… you mean she's… LENALEE!" Lavi raced up the stairs as fast as he could. Just as his foot hit the top stair a scream echoed from Lenalee's room. He raced around the corner and was swept off of his feet by a dark, snake-like entity.

Across the room Lenalee was struggling to free herself from a forest of shadow snakes that were sprouting from the wall. They had already bound her legs, rendering her Innocence useless. A couple feet away from her Road Camelot was surrounded by the shadows as well, but she was just managing to keep them away with a circle of her candles. Every time a shadow passed close enough to touch the flames they wilted. But as he watched, several of the shadows joined, becoming a giant hand. It reached out for Road, snuffing out the candles it came in contact with.

Road, scrambled back, trying to evade it. Her door shimmered into existence next to her but it faded almost instantly.

Lavi tried to get to his feet but found himself bound to the wall by shadows. He watched helplessly as Lenalee vanished into the shadows without a trace. Road somehow managed to fight free of the shadows by summoning more candles. Lavi assumed it was out of human instinct rather than design, but as soon as Road was free she dived for Lenalee, grabbing her hand, and tried to pull her back. She failed and Lenalee disappeared from view. The shadows receded with her.

Suddenly Lavi was free and he was instantly on his feet. Drawing his hammer on reflex he activated his Innocence and struck at Road. The Noah, taken by surprise, was hit hard in the stomach. The impact made her throw up and double over in pain.

"What… what the hell was that for?" She gasped. "I didn't do anything this time. It was one of your own damned Innocence users." She gasped in pain again, clutching her midsection. "Damn that hurt."

"Whether you did anything or not, you're still a Noah." Lavi looked down at her coldly.

"And you're what? An Exorcist? Think again, Bookman Apprentice, your not allowed to choose sides unless your life is in danger."

Lavi twitched at that reminder. "Fine. But I need to do something with you." He walked over to a corner and started rummaging through Lenalee's pack.

Road watched him curiously. "What are you doing?" When he stood up she blanched. "You're not serious, are you?"

"Well, well. So you really were an enemy after all." Zaemon gave Road a sour look. Lavi had tied her hands and feet together with rope then used a pillowcase to gag her. The look on her face was one of mild annoyance. "I suppose you should receive accolades for stealth, but under the circumstances you'll have to settle for a lot less. However, if you give me an explanation as to what is going on here in my village, I may let you go."

Road nodded her head, her way of telling them to remove the pillowcase. "Not that I would get very far anyway. Whoever is controlling your cursed village is also inhibiting my powers." She looked over at Lavi. "You were witness to that fact. I can't summon my door, I don't have Lero to move around, and my candles barely affect whatever is out there." Leroy, who was curled up next to Allen's body, hissed violently at his brother's name.

Lavi nodded. Whoever was controlling this phenomenon was extremely powerful, able to hold their own against a Noah so easily.

"Well then, do you have any idea how they are doing this?" Zaemon was anxious to get into action.

Road looked thoughtful. "If I had my guess, I'd say that the power of the Innocence this person is using is similar to my own abilities. It's like they're using the shadows as a different world than this one, a different dimension of being. But that couldn't be possible, could it?" She fell into a puzzled silence.

Zaemon sighed and shook his head. Questioning was pointless, nobody knew anything. His sword was useless against anything but Akuma and spirits, and his magic could not detect Innocence. "Well, first things first. Let us focus on healing this young man." He motioned to Allen's unconscious body. "If it comes down to a fight we'll need our numbers." He walked over to Road. "I'll let you go for now, but if you take one misstep, I'll cut off your head and display it as a warning."

"That's not very peaceable, Zaemon Yoshichika." Road looked at him and smiled. "It is flattering to know that you'd like to see my face every day, but I'm already interested in someone else."

Zaemon spluttered and looked over at Lavi, who just shrugged. "You could try, and you would fail. Physical attacks don't work on her," Lavi put a hand on his heart. "Believe me, I know."


	4. The Fall of the House of Yoshichika

I do not own D. Gray-Man or any of its products, subsidiaries, affiliates, or their respective property. I do however claim intellectual copyright and legal ownership of my own invented characters and storylines. This is a fan fiction work and I do not obtain any fiscal gain from it (So please don't sue me -_-;;) It is illegal to reproduce and/or distribute this fan fiction work without due credit to the D. Gray-Man creators and myself. Please enjoy your reading experience! ^_^ ^_^

This was supposed to be the last chapter but I had to split it up or else it would be too long. _Lilium_ ends here.

The Shadow King

Chapter Four: The Fall of the House of Yoshichika

_O quam sancta, quam serena, quam benigma, quam amoena, o castitatis lilium._

_Oh how holy, how serene, how benign, how pleasant, oh Lily of Purity._

Lavi watched with growing discomfort as the full moon rose over the rice fields. With its light came the stark shadows of the night. As he watched, those shadows lengthened into the forms of the peasant farmers that had once lived in the village. They moved silently, each working the same patch of grain they had harvested the night before. The first night he had come to observe Lavi had tried to communicate with the people. They had not reacted in the slightest. As they worked he could here whispers. The villagers all talked to themselves, seemingly unaware of those beside them. They were sad, often talking through tears, wondering where their families had gone and why the rice they had so diligently harvested the night before was back again. Through their whispers he had gathered that they were held there against their will, promised freedom once all of the rice was gone. What troubled Lavi the most was that there was not a single grain of rice to be found in the fields.

He nearly jumped out of his skin when Road spoke right beside him. "So that's how they do it."

"How they do what?"

"Harvest all of the rice. I'm surprised you haven't figured it out yet." She smiled impishly. "But then, you don't quite have the experience I do with the _other_."

Lavi was sure he would regret doing so, but he asked anyway. "What is the… _other_?"

"Do you know what shadows are, Apprentice?" Road loved to remind Lavi of his inability to attack her.

"Of course. They're an absence of light. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Everything. I've learned many things through my ability to travel around in my own worlds and this is one of them: It is true that shadows are an absence of light, but that is only what you humans can see. In truth, there is only one shadow. Because darkness itself is a void, all darkness is the same darkness. This is where the _other_ comes in. The _other_ is a void as well, but that is only one characteristic. Seen from the _other_ side, light becomes the shadow, and everything that is here is not, and everything that is not is here. I would liken it to a mirror that shows a perfect opposite of the human world."

Lavi wasn't sure he understood. "You're awfully chatty tonight."

"I'm bored. I can't leave, Allen isn't awake yet, and Mr. Samurai threatens to kill me every time I'm around.

But back to my explanation. There are certain advantages gained when one has access to the _other_. The most important one is speed of travel. In the human world, everything can only move so fast, and nothing can go faster than light. Because of this, the human world also experiences the phenomenon of time. These things, however, do not limit the_ other_. Because all absences are the same absence, they are the same past, present, and future. There is no time, no distance. A void here is the exact same void on the other side of the world."

Lavi nodded. "So you're saying that if a person was to travel through the _other_, travel would be instantaneous. Also, if a person were to go into the void, they could move any_time_ as well as any_where_."

"You catch on quick. But the most worrisome thing about this situation is this: I can only control the void to the point of making what isn't into what is. Whoever the person is that controls this Innocence can do much, much more. If this were a game of cards, to use one Tyki's expressions, I would only be a minor queen, maybe even less, and this _other_ user would be the Ace of Spades. In this battle… I will help the Exorcists this one time because I am frightened. But, as it stands, I am also your most powerful ally. Unless this accommodator has learned the same trick as well, I have only one advantage."

Lavi cringed at the thought of having to rely on a Noah with his life. "What is your advantage?"

Road laughed. "Like I would say that out loud. Look around; we're surrounded by darkness. In all likelihood the accommodator has heard every word I just said. Besides, you already know what it is." She tapped his chest as a reminder.

"Right. Well, thanks for the information. I'm going to call the Order in the morning and see if they have any ideas on how to proceed."

"Le—Lenalee…" Allen spoke softly in his sleep.

"Huh? Allen? How did you get here?" Lenalee looked up in surprise. They were in a large stone walled room with windows that looked out into an endless black nothingness.

"What do you mean?" Allen had no idea what she was talking about. As far as he knew, he had always been there.

"Never mind. I'm just glad to see you." Lenalee wrapped her arms around him.

Allen blushed. He still had no idea what was happening. "Where're the others? Lavi and Michi?"

Lenalee broke the hug and stepped away. "Oh, you're not Allen." Lenalee walked backward until she came to a corner where she huddled down. "This place is so confusing. None of it makes sense." Her eyes started to tear.

Allen went over to her. Even if he didn't know what she was talking about, he could not bear to see Lenalee so sad. "Lenalee, come here." He reached out and gathered her to him. He stroked her hair and gently rocked back and forth.

"It's okay. I'm here for you. Remember what I promised you at Earl's?"

Lenalee's eyes snapped open and she looked up at him. "You, you must be Allen, then. But how come you…" Lenalee caught her breath. "I see." Allen was asleep in the real world. That had to be the answer. He was dreaming, and his dream had led him to her.

She couldn't help herself. Knowing that his desire to protect her was so strong, how could she? Lenalee surprised both herself and Allen by reaching up and pulling him down into a kiss. Lenalee had known she had feelings for Allen ever since she had first met him. Even as early as his first mission, when her brother's robot had rampaged through the Headquarters and sedated her, it was Allen's voice that had brought her back to consciousness.

Allen melted. It felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He returned her kiss with all of his heart. They sank to the floor in an emotional embrace. He broke the kiss briefly to look down at her. He brushed a stray lock of her hair from her face… and fell backward in pain.

"Aaugh!" His body convulsed again, his back arching as he tried to escape the agony.

"Allen! Allen, what's wrong?" Lenalee was kneeling beside him, helpless as to what she should do. His body bucked again and his form shimmered. "Allen! What's happening?" Lenalee was starting to cry again.

It took effort, but Allen reached up to her. "Don't cry. I'll be back." With that his body disappeared as another round of pain engulfed him.

"LEENALEEE!" Allen sat up screaming her name.

"Thank goodness. I thought we'd lost him." Zaemon sounded relieved. Road had snuck in when he wasn't looking and doing so had saved the Exorcist's life.

"Hey, Zaemon, shouldn't this be something to worry about?" Road lifted Allen's shirt, revealing numerous pentagrams starting to appear on his skin.

"I thought I told you to… shit! Get out of my way!"

Apparently Allen had become infected with the Akuma virus during his battle. Being a parasite type, his body had fought the infection as long as it could. But with so much blood lost, and such severe injuries, it was only a matter of time before he succumbed. Zaemon had rid his body of the virus, but by then Allen had stopped breathing. He had had to be brought back with artificial resuscitation.

"Where…?" Allen looked around in confusion. He could have sworn he'd heard Lenalee's voice speaking to him. Seeing only Zaemon he lay down. Road had been removed forcefully by Lavi in case she set him off.

"It's about time you woke up. It's been almost a month. How are you feeling?" Zaemon checked his pulse and pupilary reflex. "It appears you're healed. Sorry about that virus, I had no idea you were infected. I've never heard of anyone fighting it off before."

"Yeah, you're welcome." Road's head popped up by the side of the bed.

Without even thinking Allen's left hand shot out and wrapped around Road's throat. "What is she doing here?"

"Easy, boy. I know how you feel, but you can't kill her yet. Besides, she just saved your life." Zaemon sounded like it hurt him to say that.

Allen's hand did not loosen. "Where are Lavi and Lenalee?"

Lavi looked sheepishly in through the doorway. "I'm right here. Sorry about that, she's squirmy. I couldn't keep her out."

Allen sighed. "You know, you're Bookman neutrality is very annoying sometimes. Let me guess, she's Michi too?"

Lavi nodded.

"The fact that Road's here, alive, and Lenalee isn't around also leads me to believe this: A: Something has happened to Lenalee; she was probably abducted like the village folk. B: Through your investigations on the case while I was unconscious you have discovered the means through which this threat operates. C: That means is very similar to how Road, threat number 2, operates. Chances are her powers are being inhibited by threat number one or she would have either escaped or attempted to kill us. My guess is she wants to bargain with us, something along the lines of her help in exchange for her eventual freedom. Am I correct?"

Everyone in the room stared at him in awe. "That's—That's it exactly. How did you… no, when did you get that smart?" Lavi was stunned.

Allen shrugged. "Beats me. That's just what made sense. Maybe my near death experience fixed a few loose connections up here." He tapped his head with his right hand. His left was still wrapped tightly around Road's throat.

"Um… Allen, honey… could you let go? I… can't… breathe." Road was starting to turn red from lack of oxygen.

"Only if you promise not to call me honey anymore."

Road nodded vigorously. Allen released his grip and she stepped back rapidly. "That's better. Thanks… honey." She laughed and danced out of his reach.

Allen ignored her and sat up on the edge of his bed. "Okay, first item on the agenda is food. After that, bring me up to speed on all of your information. Do we have any communications with HQ?"

"None. The phone lines aren't working and we didn't bring any wireless golems." Lavi spoke in an almost military tone. He had never seen Allen like this before. He seemed like the same person, but more focused and alert. It was like talking to a sergeant, only younger and friendlier. He walked away briskly with Zaemon to prepare a meal.

After they had finished eating Lavi told Allen everything that they knew and could guess at.

Allen looked thoughtful for a while before he spoke. "So the villagers are each trapped in their own individual time-spaces during the rice harvesting season. That makes sense, since doing so would provide that rice is always there no matter how many times it's harvested. Also, the accommodator is male, we think, based on his abduction of women before anyone else. We can also assume that Lenalee is being held elsewhere as you have not seen her in the fields." Allen flinched when he said this, remembering the dream he had at Earl's. "But there are weaknesses to his abilities. Road, your candles seem to dissuade his attentions, any idea why?"

Road was sitting across the room with a glazed look in her eyes. "Huh?"

"I asked if you have any idea why your candles affect this accommodator's Innocence more than anything else?"

"Well, yeah, because I want them to beat him. The _other_ is a place for dreams and wishes for those who can control it."

"So why is it impossible for you to summon your door?"

"Because his will is stronger than mine. I don't really mind hanging around. The others won't be able to find me and I get to skip school." She smiled at the look of surprise on the others' faces. "What? You didn't know I go to school like every other kid?"

The others just shook their heads and returned to their analysis.

Lavi spoke up. "So what we need to do is get Road to focus more and get us in. Once we find the accommodator and get him under control it becomes routine. The only problem is how do we get Road to concentrate?"

They looked over at her as she traced shapeless designs on the couch with her finger. It was Zaemon who noticed that she was outlining Allen's face. Leaning over to Lavi he whispered, "Hey, does that girl have a thing for Allen? She's drawing his face on the couch."

Lavi snapped his fingers and walked over to Allen's side. Kneeling down he whispered into his ear. "We may just be able to do this, old boy. But it's going to hinge on your performance." Lavi nodded when Allen's eyes grew wide. "That's right. We need Road to do this for _you_ and not for anyone else. If she really does 'love' you she'll be able to get us in no problem."

Allen watched a shadow on the far side of the room twitch. It formed itself into the shape of a man and bowed, as if welcoming him. It was a challenge.

"Okay, I'll do it. But you owe me big time, Bookman Jr." Allen did not mention the shadow, which was now gone, and went over to Road.

"Hey, Road. I need some fresh air, do want to come with me?"

Road stopped in surprise. "Oh. Okay, sure." She took Allen's proffered hand and they left the room.

Zaemon was shocked. "He does hate her, right? I mean, he sounded like he meant it."

Lavi chuckled. "Yeah. He spent so many years trying to pay off his old master's debts that he became somewhat akin to a professional con artist. Take my advice and never play poker with him. He even out cheated a Noah once."

Zaemon looked after them in surprise. "Maybe he could give Kyuzo a few tips. That kid couldn't fake his way out of a paper bag."

Road walked alongside Allen happily. She hadn't been paying attention in the meeting but was glad at her sudden change of fortune. He was even holding her hand.

"Road, is the accommodator's will really stronger than yours? Or do you really just want us trapped here?"

Road looked up, anxious at the pleading tone in his voice. "Well, I get to be around you everyday now, and it is fun to watch you in so much pain with that girl missing. I don't think the Innocence user would be much of a challenge to me, to answer your question. After all, I'm a Noah with much more experience and they're just a lowly, inexperienced Exorcist."

Allen released her hand and stopped. "So this is just about seeing me in pain? You see that every time we fight." His face was unreadable.

"But this is more prolonged. It's so much more pleasing." Road tried to pull him along but he wouldn't shift.

"Do you love me, Road?"

"Of course I do. I kissed you, didn't I? Right in front of Tyki even."

"But you don't care if that love is reciprocated." Allen sounded abused. It even made Road flinch.

"I do I do! Why else would I always try to torture you? Pain and hatred are very near love. Passion is all it takes to convert them."

Allen looked down at her with a grim expression. "If you loved me, you would have no problem getting us to the accommodator. Surely you realize that I would love you, adore you, if you helped me save my friends. They are all I have, please." Allen got down on one knee and took her hand. "Road, I'm begging you. Help me save Lenalee, help me save this village, and my heart will be yours." He tried not to throw up with this last sentence.

Road looked astonished. She had never considered trying to win Allen over by helping him, but then it wasn't really like her to be empathetic. "That is a tempting offer, Allen. But how do I know you won't just abandon me once this mission ends for you? Besides, you can't really expect me to leave the Innocence to you. The Earl would be furious." A shudder of fear ran through her body at the thought.

Allen thought quickly. "Then you can destroy the Innocence! I don't care as long as the lives are saved. Please, if you don't believe me just look into my eyes and see the truth."

Road was convinced. Nobody would make such a desperate plea if they didn't mean it. "Okay, I'll help you."

Allen stood up and hugged her joyfully. He just wished there was some way to let Lenalee know he was coming for her. He led Road back to their temporary headquarters at a run. He knew this deal wouldn't trigger a rejection so he was fine. As soon as he had the opportunity he would simply fake an injury to his head that would 'wipe away' his memories of the last two days. Once they were in, he had confidence that the accommodator would keep them their until their confrontation was over.

As Lavi and Zaemon prepared for their trip to the _other_, Allen took Leroy aside. "This might seem like a stretch, but if you're shaped like a snake, do you have venom?"

"It is not venom per say, Master. But it will kill most mortal enemies."

"Good." Allen explained the deal he had made with Road and his plan to get out of it. "If I can't find a way to do that, I want you to inject me with just enough to make me unconscious, okay? When I wake up nobody will be surprised if I don't remember some things."

"Very well, Master." Leroy curled into his customary position on Allen's arm.

They gathered outside. Zaemon called Kyuzo to be present. "Son, I may not return. If that is the case, please watch over this village with your life."

Kyuzo bowed his head. "Yes Father."

Road's door appeared beside them without any interference. Road looked proud at the showcase of her power and Allen didn't have the heart to tell her they were being allowed in. They entered the door and vanished.

Standing alone in front of his house Kyuzo raised his head, eyes gleaming as a dark fog swirled around him. "No Father, you will not return, nor will those children. This is my village, the village of Tsukumozaka Jurobei Mitsuharu!"


	5. The Shadow King and the Unseen Queen

I do not own D. Gray-Man or any of its products, subsidiaries, affiliates, or their respective property. I do however claim intellectual copyright and legal ownership of my own invented characters and storylines. This is a fan fiction work and I do not obtain any fiscal gain from it (So please don't sue me -_-;;) It is illegal to reproduce and/or distribute this fan fiction work without due credit to the -Man creators and myself. Please enjoy your reading experience! ^_^ ^_^

The Shadow King

Chapter Five: The Shadow King and the Unseen Queen

_He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth: he toucheth the hills, and they smoke._

_Psalms 104:32_

Walking through the door made Allen shiver. The crossover from one universe to the next made the cells in his body quiver as they readjusted to the new physics. Instead of walking into a child's room, as he half expected due to his last experience with Road's door, they appeared in a large white marble gallery that was lined with immense pillars. Before them, about a hundred feet away, the floor rose in steps before two black thrones. Seated in one was a straight-backed, hooded figure. He was tall and male, but that was all they could see. In the throne next to the hooded figure sat Lenalee. The robes she wore were pure black, giving her the appearance of a wicked empress. Shadows crossed over her body and the look on her face was one of blank neutrality.

Before Allen could run forward the figure rose. "Greetings, Exorcists. Welcome to my realm." The man removed his hood and revealed his face. "As you can see, I am already well aware of your plans. I will tell you this now, you will not separate me from my Innocence without killing me, and I will not give up my kingdom."

"Kyuzo! Why are you doing this?" Zaemon was heart broken. His only child and heir was the cause of his village's disappearance.

"Silence! I am no longer Kyuzo Yoshichika, I am Tsukumozaka Jurobei Mitsuharu and I am the Shadow King!"

Zaemon was weeping. "My son. You have shamed me; you have shamed your family. Have you no sorrow?"

The king laughed. "Shame? You old fool! Our family has been estranged from our native country for centuries! Japan abandoned us! Yet you and our ancestors still kept yourselves separate from the country that sheltered us, that gave our ancestors a second chance. I am not a samurai, Father. By taking on the name of your family's oldest enemy I revoke your lineage and proclaim myself to be a new and separate generation. A king of the people, to help them prosper and grow."

Zaemon lowered his head. "You are correct in one fact, Kyuzo. You are not my son." With that Zaemon drew a short sword and knelt on the floor. "I cannot accept this shame upon myself or my ancestors." Taking a deep breath Zaemon drove the tip of the blade into his side and drew it across his body. Before the stunned Exorcists could react and stop him he removed the blade and pierced his body again, just above his groin and made a vertical slit in his abdomen. His intestines spilled onto the floor and he screamed in pain. The foul smell of ruptured organs rapidly filled the room causing those nearby to vomit.

As the pool of blood, bile, and stool accumulated around Zaemon's lifeless body Tsukumozaka laughed. "He… he actually did it! I can't believe he was so attached to the old stories that he actually committed ritual suicide. What a joke!" As his laughter continued he waved his hand and the body of his former father disappeared into darkness.

Road just watched the scene with mild enjoyment. If it hadn't stunk so much she would have loved it.

"Kyuzo!" Allen didn't care about the suicide at all. His eye had seen Zaemon's spirit cross over peacefully. "What have you done to Lenalee?"

"Oh, an armored spirit I see. Don't worry yourself over your former girlfriend, Exorcist. I have claimed her as my own, so she is of no concern to you—" Zaemon was slammed into his throne, cracking it.

Allen's fury had activated Clown Crown and it was assuming a form he hadn't seen before. The cape had folded outward into a pair of golden wings and the tunic had become plate armor. The mask over his eyes formed a visor that allowed him to see even the tiniest movement. In his hand he held his sword tightly. His wrath had made him the embodiment of divine punishment. The pure power of his transformation was what had hit the king.

Tsukumozaka stood shakily and looked back at the Exorcists. Lavi had also activated his Innocence, getting ready to back up Allen's charge. Tsukumozaka noticed that Road had retreated and was staring wide eyed at Allen's form. Indeed he could feel the boy's anger and hatred from a hundred feet away. The king snarled. He had no choice but to use his most defensive technique. "So be it, child. I will let you have your chance. If you can find your way to me in three days, we will battle and decide the victor." He motioned with his hand and a wall of shadow erupted from the floor.

Seeing the motion, Allen sent Clown Belt out and retrieved Lenalee before the shadows surrounded him. The last thing he heard was Tsukumozaka's infuriated scream.

The darkness enveloped them completely. Allen tried to wave his hand in front of his face and ended up smacking his nose. He deactivated Clown Crown, which had reverted to normal since he had Lenalee safe with him, and felt his way to her.

"Lenalee. Lenalee, are you okay?" He shook her shoulder but she stayed silent.

"She does not look very alert, Master." Leroy stuck his head out of Allen's pack.

"You can see in here?"

"Yes. I see using heat signatures, and shadows do nothing to inhibit heat transfer. Everything is clear to me."

"Can you see anything unusual with her?" Allen was glad now that he had kept Leroy with him instead of giving him to Lavi.

"There's a cold spot just below the base of her skull. Roll her over so I can get a better look." Allen shifted her for Leroy. "Yes. There seems to be a parasite of some sort attached to her skull. It looks like an insect of some sort."

"He's brainwashing her?" Allen's voice was filled with the heat of anger again. "Can you tell if it's anchored to her spine or brain stem? Is it okay to remove?"

There was a long silence as Leroy observed the problem as best he could. "It looks okay to remove. It may just be an _other_ creation like Road's candles. If that is the case, then you should be able to destroy it with Innocence."

Allen sighed and activated his Innocence again. "Okay, just tell me where to go." Allen followed Leroy's instructions and discovered a long, scaly creature that was protruding from the back of Lenalee's neck. He grasped what he guessed was the base of its head and pulled it taut. He started to sweat heavily as he prepared to fire with his other hand.

"Just a little to the left. No, now the right… too much! Okay, slowly left, more, stop. Just a little up. Perfect."

Allen hoped he wouldn't blow off his hand or Lenalee's head and fired. The shot just grazed his fingertip and he felt the creature dissolve into smoke. The acrid smell of singed hair drifted up to his nose.

"Oww…" Lenalee shifted and rubbed the back of her neck. "Listen, if you insist on keeping me in the dark all the time and using my body, at least have the courtesy of not doing weird stuff like burning me." Lenalee sounded petulant.

"What? Lenalee, what did he do to you?" Allen was even more furious now than he had been when he arrived. It felt as if fire were burning through his veins, filling him with murderous rage.

"Allen! Is that really you? What happened to you? Last time I saw you, you collapsed… Allen?" Lenalee felt a cold shiver run through her body. Allen's anger was sending tangible ripples of energy out through his Innocence.

"What did you just say? He… used you?" Allen's sword quivered with the urge to strike something. He whirled around and drove it through one of the walls surrounding them. He heard it crumble and fall.

Lenalee blushed. "N-no, he didn't. I just assumed he was going to, because of your dream." She was surprised that her words had induced such a Komui-like reaction in Allen. "Allen, can you tone it down a bit? Even my Innocence is starting to react to you." She reached down to scratch her leg. The strong force radiating from him had irritated the area covered by her Black Boots.

"Uh, oh." Allen felt embarrassed at having let his emotions get the better of him. "Sorry." He felt his way over to Lenalee again. Having collapsed the wall beside him he had to stretch his arm out in front of his body to avoid colliding with her.

Lenalee gasped when Allen reached her, his hand unerringly grasping her breast. "Uh… um, Allen? You found me?" She flinched when he squeezed his hand.

"What? What is that? It's soft…?" He didn't realize what he was holding.

"Um, please let go, Allen. You're touching my breast." She felt him let go and heard him stumble back and trip over himself. She couldn't help but laugh at his over reaction.

"Hey, what's so funny?" Allen rubbed his backside as he stood back up. His face was burning and he was sure it was bright red.

"Oh nothing. What happened to Lavi? Is he here too?"

Allen explained everything that had happened since she was kidnapped. She made him repeat the parts about his last appearance and his deal with Road. "So that was your ghost? How nice to think that you wanted to spend your final hours with me." Lenalee smiled slyly.

"That's not nice to tease me about my first death." Allen felt strange saying the words "first death".

"I was serious." Lenalee put out her hand, feeling it settle on his shoulder. "What are you going to do about your deal with Road? You must have something up your sleeve if you haven't been rejected by the Innocence."

"Well, I was hoping to fake a head injury and claim to forget about these past few days. Either that or have Leroy poison me so I randomly collapse near her and say that I don't remember anything."

"That's a risky plan."

"Yeah, especially since I don't want to 'forget' about what you did for me this trip."

Lenalee felt her face flush. "I haven't done anything."

"Yes you did. You helped me overcome my fear. I stopped having my nightmares because of you."

"Oh. Are you sure they didn't stop because Road got distracted and forgot to keep them up?" Lenalee couldn't believe Allen was being so ingratiating. It wasn't like him. "Come on, we need to find Lavi. Especially if Road is with him."

"Okay. Leroy? Can you tell which way we should go?"

"As far as I can see, there are three choices. Forward, back, and through the hole in the wall. It's up to you, Master."

"Alright." He felt around until he found Lenalee's hand. He grasped it, intertwining his fingers with hers. "Let's not get separated, okay?"

Lenalee squeezed his hand in response.

"Aw. How come I got stuck with you?" Road slumped her shoulders in disappointment. "Where are we?"

"Beats me. Why not light some of your candles and see?" Lavi felt around until he found a wall. The texture suggested brick. He took a couple steps and felt the wall turn ninety degrees. They were in a maze. He didn't know how he knew that but he sensed it.

A sudden glow behind him drew his gaze. He saw Road with a candle floating over each of her shoulders. They flickered brightly, illuminating a three-foot radius of stonework hallway. "Damn it, he's still blocking my door. Come on Junior, let's go find Allen." She turned and left, leaving Lavi in the dark. He sighed and followed.

"How do you know Allen is this way?"

"My Allen senses are tingling." Road looked over shoulder at him and shivered.

Lavi smacked his forehead. "Please don't do that again. Ever." He pushed past her and continued down the passageway.

"What's wrong? Don't you believe me?" Road giggled at Lavi's reaction and followed.

They walked for what seemed like a day. The path twisted over and over again. Every time they thought they had found a correct path they found they were trapped in a miles long dead end. After what felt like another day Road finally sat down in exhaustion. "I give up. I'm hungry, do you have anything to eat?"

Lavi sighed. "I may not be able to fight unless my life is on the line or I'm under orders, but I don't have to help you out either." He turned away from the wall and started to retrace his steps.

"What? You're really going to let me just starve here?" Road couldn't believe anyone but a Noah could be that evil. "You'll get lost in there, you know. Without my candles you'll never find your way out."

Lavi paused and looked over his shoulder at her. "You forgot I'm a Bookman. I have a perfect memory, which means I memorized how many steps I've taken in which directions. I won't be lost." He walked off without her.

"You just sealed your death, Bookman." Road's eyes flashed and her door appeared beside her. She could feel the shadows struggling to hold it back but she was much stronger than the inexperienced accommodator controlling them. She stepped in and disappeared.

Lavi walked slowly, counting his steps and holding out his hands so he wouldn't run into the wall. He was glad to be rid of Road; she was so annoying. Turning to right he took a step and fell to the ground in pain. Fire erupted from his chest and the strap on his pack began to burn through. One of Road's candles was lodged just to the right of his heart, shattering the edge of his sternum. He heard a child giggle behind him.

"You really should be more kind." Four more candles appeared and drove themselves into Lavi's arms and legs, pinning him to the wall before igniting. "Now, I'll ask again. Do you have any food I can eat?" Without waiting for an answer she took his pack, which had fallen to the ground, and dumped its contents on the floor. Food rations and five thick sticks littered the ground.

"What are these?" Road picked up one of the sticks.

"Better be careful with those, they tend to _explode_." The emphasis on the last word triggered the stick. An enormous explosion filled the hallway, consuming Road and searing Lavi's face. He could feel his hair catch fire and burn away. The sudden vacuum sucked the air from his lungs and the fiery ash burned his lungs as he gasped for breath.

"Oh, _hell_ that hurt!" Road was on the ground, her flesh burned away. As he watched her body filled in like wax into a mould. "I really wish you Exorcists would stop doing that. _You can not kill me unless you know my true form._" She stood up and shook herself. "But at least you did something." She walked closer and looked at his face. "You look better without eyebrows."

Lavi cursed her and flexed his fingers, trying to pull his arms out off of the candles. "Let me down from here!"

"Why would I do that? You tried to starve me and you tried to blow me up. I'm not feeling very kindly toward you right now." Road turned back to the scattered rations which, thanks to the science department at the Black Order headquarters, were wrapped in flame retardant, waterproof coverings. She picked up a sandwich and started her meal.

Lavi hung on the wall watching as Road ate her fill. The candles holding him to the wall melted down and were soon running hot wax down into his wounds, intensifying his pain five fold. When she had finished Road waved her hand and the candles holding Lavi up disappeared.

The gaping holes in his legs and arms had been filled in with wax from the melting candles, allowing him movement and bearing his weight. If nothing else he could at least walk. Fighting was out of the question.

"Come on, Bookman. I can't kill you yet or Allen would hate me forever." Road summoned her door and motioned to him. "I'm tired of playing around with this ass wipe of a kid. Let's go kick his ass and get this over with."

"So your door works again, huh? I suppose I'm not surprised. But shouldn't we collect Allen first? If we kill the accommodator first won't he be trapped here?"

Road nodded her head. "Good point. I wouldn't want to kill my boyfriend."

Lavi assumed she was just in her own dream world again. "Tell me, do you just take Allen's form when no one else is around and just spend hour staring at yourself?"

Road looked at him like he was crazy. "Of course not! I do much more than just stare."

Lavi decided to keep his mouth shut after that.

"Allen? Are you still here?" Lenalee and Allen had stopped to rest after what seemed like days of walking. Without any light they had quickly lost track of time.

She felt around her, afraid he might have walked away in the darkness. She knew he wouldn't leave her, but it was easy to get lost in the inky blackness. Her hand came to rest on his sleeping body and she relaxed.

Her touch woke Allen and he rolled over. "Is it time to get moving again?"

"I'm not sure anymore. I don't think we're going to find our way out of here in three days. For all we know we've already passed the limit."

"Don't say that. We can't give up hope. Let's keep going." He reached over to help her up and grabbed her breast for the fourth time. Lenalee was beginning to wonder if he really could see in the dark. "Sorry. Where's your hand?"

Lenalee brought her hand up and put it in his. He pulled her to her feet and started off. He stopped when Lenalee did not follow. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to walk right now." She pulled Allen back and put her arms around him. "Let's just stay like this for now."

Allen was not sure what to do. He pulled her closer and felt her rest her head on his shoulder. He didn't know what prompted him to do it but he began rocking gently back and forth. Lenalee joined him and they were soon dancing slowly in a circle.

"It's like a dream." Lenalee didn't want it to end.

"If it is, don't wake up."

Lenalee looked up and imagined she could see Allen looking back. Rising on tiptoe she pressed her lips to his. She felt Allen begin to kiss her back when a bright light suddenly appeared behind them. Allen whirled around activating his Innocence and standing ready to defend.

Before them were Road and Lavi flanked by four floating candles. Lavi looked as if he was ready to pass out. "You wouldn't happen to have those Akuma pieces, would you Lenalee?"

Lenalee ran to his side before he collapsed and Allen's gaze shifted menacingly to Road. "What did you do to him?" His hand twitched and his sword came up pointing to her face.

"Nothing he didn't do to me. I think four pierced limbs is ample repayment for trying to starve me and blow me up, don't you?" She walked forward and ran her finger along the flat of his blade. "You should be thankful I didn't just kill him, Allen."

Allen glanced over and saw that Lenalee was working on Lavi's injuries. "You're right. But how did you get here?"

"I got tired of playing around. If you're not going to do anything I'm going to flay this child wide open and leave him to rot. Anyone who has the audacity to think they're stronger than a Noah deserves to die."

She turned around and walked back to Lenalee and Lavi. The Akuma parts had just finished assimilating themselves into Lavi's body and to Allen's surprise his eye deactivated for the first time in two months.

"Let's go. I'm getting bored." Road's door appeared beside her and opened. They could see the shadows around it trying to surround them but the light from Road's candles held them back. They went through the door, knowing they would be trapped in the maze forever if they didn't.

"Ah, the arrogant brats return with their pet Noah." Tsukumozaka Jurobei Mitsuharu rose from his throne with a conceited air. "Let me guess, you still want me to free the villagers, weakening our country's trading strength and ultimately destroying us. Tell me, did my father tell you about the plans for our village? They wanted to burn it. We were not producing the amount of rice our ancestor's had and our people were slowly moving away. By doing what I did I saved this village. By this time next year we will have made up our deficit for the past ten years. We will be honored and respected again."

"Why did you kidnap Lenalee?"

"Wouldn't you? Look at her; she's beautiful, graceful, and full of spirit. Who wouldn't want her for themselves?"

Allen brought up his left arm and pointed it at the man before him. "You tried to brainwash her, you ass hole!" Allen did not wait for a reply and charged. He was halfway there when Tsukumozaka raised his arm and a shadow erupted from the ground knocking him backward. Allen fired into the shadow, hoping to drive it back. It didn't work. The shadows engulfed him, smothering him.

He heard Lenalee and Lavi both activate their Innocence and attack. Their disappointed and frustrated cries telling him that they had failed as well. He couldn't bear the thought that he had allowed himself to be beaten so easily. He hoped his plan would work.

Tsukumozaka looked at Road and smiled. "Looks like it's just you and I now, Noah." He motioned the shadows forward and they broke on Road like ocean waves on a rock.

"Nice try, kid. But call me when you have a little more experience." She waved her hand and suddenly they were in a child's room, filled with slashed stuffed animals and dolls dripping blood. Large gift-wrapped boxes lay randomly around them. "Let's play in my room." She smiled wickedly and suddenly the air was full of her sharpened candles.

Tsukumozaka sent giant waves of shadows outward, clearing most of the room. He was starting to become winded. Obviously he wasn't used to using his Innocence so much.

Road laughed. "Very good. This may be fun if you can hold out." She danced around him throwing candles from every angle, allowing him just enough time to block them. She was wearing him down slowly to the point where she could do whatever she wanted with him.

"Why do help these Exorcist's? Aren't they your enemies?" Tsukumozaka knew he was on the verge of exhaustion and he needed to stop her from fighting.

"Do you really have to ask me that? You, little prick, insulted me and attacked Allen. I'm the only one who gets to do that. He's mine." She threw a candle and it pierced his right shoulder. "You're the 'Shadow King' huh? Well then, allow me to introduce myself in terms you'll understand. I am the Unseen Queen."

Tsukumozaka screamed as his body was torn apart by Road's candles. His body fell to the floor in shreds. Road smiled in mild amusement as the accommodator's body was torn apart. When she was finished nothing remained but a bloody pile of human flesh. It reminded her of a deli she had visited in London. She walked over and began to search the remains for the Innocence. She assumed he was a parasite type because he controlled the shadows more like a part of his body than a tool. When she couldn't find it chills ran down her spine. Road quickly summoned her door and returned to the Shadow King's hall.

"Where is it?" Road was not looking forward to fighting three Exorcists for a single piece of Innocence. If it had been a weaker Innocence, in fact, she would have left it.

"Where's what?" Allen looked at her puzzled.

"You promised me the Innocence and it wasn't on his body. It must have been here somewhere. Where is it?" She held out her hand.

"Road, Innocence can't work without contact with the accommodator. It would have to be with him."

Road stopped short with that. She thought awhile and looked around the room. When the light gleamed in her eyes Allen knew his plan was about to fail.

"Where's that snake of yours?" Road walked slowly toward Allen. "You wouldn't go back on your word by having that thing steal the Innocence from me would you?" She was halfway to Allen when a bright green flash caught her attention. "There you are." She flicked her wrist and sent a candle toward Leroy. It bounced off harmlessly and Leroy spun to face her.

"My Master did not ask me to take the Innocence from the young accommodator's body, but I could not let it fall into the hands of the Noah or the Millennium Earl. If you want to retrieve it, come and take it." He sped off down a side hall.

"You're dead." Road gave chase to the machine.

"Perfect." Allen grinned broadly. "It went exactly as planned." He held out his hand and Timcanpy came out from behind a pillar and flew over to him. When he landed he opened his mouth and inside rested a small black diamond; Tsukumozaka's Innocence.

Lavi and Lenalee looked at him in awe. "Allen, when did you become such a schemer?" Lenalee was impressed. Lavi merely stood in place with his mouth slightly open.

Allen handed the Innocence to Lenalee. "Hide this well. There's still one more thing I have to do. I'd better hurry too, she's summoned Akuma." He went down the hall after the Noah and his walking stick. The sound of an Akuma's gun led him to their location.

"Leroy! Come here!" Allen made his voice as commanding as possible. The sheer force of his voice made Road, the two Akuma, and Leroy stop in their tracks. "Leroy, come here."

The walking stick slithered as fast as he could, hoping to escape the Akuma in the protection of his Master. He wound his way up Allen and onto his arm. "I am here, Master."

"Leroy, give me the Innocence." Allen held out his left hand to receive the piece of glass hidden in Leroy's mouth. "Thank you."

Road walked forward with a disbelieving look on her face. "I didn't think you'd actually keep your promise."

Allen smiled. "Well, it was a promise. Here." He held out his hand toward her.

"I cannot allow this. Master or not you will not betray the Exorcists!" Leroy struck faster than the eye could follow. "You will die, traitor. May you become an Akuma as well." Leroy's voice seethed with hatred as Allen collapsed onto the ground.

"Allen!" Road ran forward and caught him before he hit the ground. His lips were turning blue and froth was beginning to build up in his mouth. His body began shaking uncontrollably and within a few seconds he was limp. Road lay him on the ground with a sigh and looked at Leroy with murder in her eyes. "Normally I would kill you for this, but I have what I came for." She grasped the fake Innocence and stood. "I should probably take Allen's Innocence as well, but Tyki already tried that. I'll leave his body to you and the Exorcists." She took one last glance at Allen's body, her eyes filled with longing and disappointment. She snapped her fingers, summoning her door and the two Akuma. They left without another word.

As soon as she was gone Leroy bit Allen's wrist again, pumping the anti-venom into his bloodstream. Allen was back to normal in a couple minutes. When he sat up Lavi and Lenalee came into the room.

"Is it over?" Lavi looked around and could not see any sign of an enemy. "I guess it is. You have to tell us what's going on now, though. We can't stand it anymore."

Allen smiled proudly. "It's easy. I sent Timcanpy through the door with Road, she didn't notice because she was too intent on Kyuzo. When Road struck the final blow, Timcanpy bit the Innocence off of his body. When she returned I knew she would suspect Leroy instead of Timcanpy because he's more noticeable. I had given Leroy a piece of glass as a fake Innocence so I could pretend to keep my deal. Leroy pretended to kill me with venom, but he only put me into a deep sleep. After Road left he gave me the anti-venom and I woke up just fine."

"Allen you just keep impressing me more and more." Lavi scratched his head and grinned.

"Yeah. It's getting to the point where I almost can't stop thinking about you." Lenalee blushed when she said this.

Allen reddened as well. He stepped forward and put a hand on her shoulder. "Tell you what; when we get back to headquarters we'll see if we can't get your brothers blessing."

The sparkle in Lenalee's eyes took Allen's breath away when he said this. Without saying another word they came together in a slightly awkward but passionate kiss.

Lavi shook his head in bemusement. "Save it for later you two. We still have to get back to the real world somehow."

Allen broke the kiss and thought a moment. Then, activating his Innocence, he took careful aim at the ceiling and fired. Large chunks of stone came raining down around them but the sight over their heads made them cheer. They were in the basement of the former House of Yoshichika.

When they finally got up to the main floor they could hear voices crying and shouting in joy and relief. Opening the door they were met with the sight of the villagers finding their loved ones and sorting out their lives once again. Smiling happily the Exorcists made their way down to the train station, Allen and Lenalee walking hand in hand.


End file.
